The Value-Sensitive Conversational Agent Co-Design Framework
Malak Sadek, Rafael A. Calvo, Céline Mougenot
Abstract
Conversational agents (CAs) are rapidly advancing across industry and academia and it is crucial to consider the values embedded within these systems. Value-sensitive design practices have benefited AI-based systems, but have not yet been widely applied to CAs. This paper introduces the Value-Sensitive Conversational Agent (VSCA) Framework. The framework uses collaborative design (co-design) activities to guide CA creators and CA users to collaboratively create three key artefacts that elicit CA users’ values and are technically useful for CA creators to drive implementation forward, resulting in value embodied CA prototypes. The paper presents the practical framework and toolkit, followed by a mixed-method evaluation through design workshops, semi-structured interviews, and a comparative survey. Results show that the framework and toolkit increase CA creators’ value-sensitivity, empower CA users, enhance collaboration, and produce value-embodied prototypes. Based on this work, we offer 14 guidelines to practically support value sensitivity in CAs.